Lead Core Line

I am going to rig for lead core line trolling and would like to know how much lead core line one puts on the reel, 100 yards or 200 yards? I will be rigging a Diawa LCW27. Does this reel need backing before I put on the lead core? I have already read Jame’s artical on lead core fishing Lake Pepin.

I was just curious about Lead Core line. At what depth are you trying to get your baits when using it? Seems like a lot of work, when you can buy something as simple as a Fish Seeker from Cabelas and have something that will take your lure down to 70+’. Obviously I am missing something, so help a clueless guy out !

We usually run a 50 foot mono leader then run 3 colors of leadcore then fill the rest of the spool with 10 lb mono. A real plus when running leadcore is to have a trolling book it will give you all the depths you need. for any bait you want to run. Cabelas has the trolling books on hand

I’ve set up lead core a bunch of different ways. I don’t like the segmented approach(Mono-Lead-Mono)….too much guesswork. I don’t care what the trolling bible says!!

You also don’t need a fancy line counter reel. Save that reel for long line trolling where repeating line lengh is important. Lead core line changes color every 10 feet, so you count colors to know how much line you have out. Besides a LC-27 is a bit small for lead. Any decent large capacity level wind reel with a good drag will do. Like a Penn 209.

Spool up 6-10 colors. Tie on a mono leader equal to the lenght of your rod. I use a 8 foot rod and 17 lb XT. Here is a basic formula to get starter. (This will vary just a small bit depending on current and boat controll)

One color will put a #7 shad rap six feet down at 1.5 mph. Two colors 12 feet, Three colors 18 feet and son on. (Basically!) So if you are in 10 feet, 1 1/2 colors is about right. Remember, you have to let lead core “settle in”. Meaning, after you let out 2 colors, it will take a minute to settle in to it’s normal running depth.

Hope that get you started. Good Luck.

J.